“Tomasso is a good man, Lissa. Treat him with respect. He’ll be of great use to me.”
“I said I would put up with him. I’ve never treated any of your men with less than my full respect.”
He nodded and let it go. Lissa rarely had an edge to her voice when she spoke with him, and he couldn’t help but hear it. She could only hope that with the fuss she’d made, he’d put it down to her dislike of her bodyguard. She knew her protests would only cement Tomasso’s position with Luigi. Luigi would believe that the new man was one he could count on and bring deeper into his organization.
“I know you succeeded because Cosmos’s widow called me, frantic. She said he slipped over the cliff to the sea and rocks below. By the time the authorities came, his body was out to sea. I know they were trying to find it; if they do, what will they find?” Luigi rubbed his hands together, looking gleeful.
“Clearly he had too much to drink and accidentally fell. It will be ruled an accident. If anyone in the Porcelli family investigates, they will come up with the same conclusion,” Lissa said with absolute confidence.
“I wanted this one, Lissa,” Luigi confided, dropping his voice and looking straight into her eyes. “Your father treated him like a son. A boy like that off the streets, and Marcello and Elizabeta treated him like famiglia. He betrayed them in such a vile way.”
Lissa nearly choked on bile. Her uncle was evil personified. She couldn’t sit across from him and look at his face, listen to his rant and keep her face from showing she wanted to kill him. She stood up and paced across the room.
“I told him. Who I was. I told him before he went over. I’ve never done that before.” She made the confession when she had never considered telling him, but he would think she was moody and edgy because of that.
She never deviated from her set scripts. Patrice Lungren killed, not Lissa. Not Giacinta. Patrice didn’t feel personal toward her targets, she brought justice to them when the justice system had failed. It had to be that way. Patrice never talked to the targets. She arranged an accident and made certain it happened.
Lissa went to the tall cabinet with the display of ornate shot glasses. She touched one, traced the etching and turned toward her uncle once she knew she was composed enough to face him. “I couldn’t help myself. I wanted him to know.”
“Good, good, Lissa. He needed to know. I hope he died hard on those rocks, the bastardo.” Luigi pounded his fist on the desktop. “There is only one left, just one. We have gotten every single one of those responsible for that dark day. You should feel proud of yourself.”
“Not until it is over,” Lissa said. “Not until the last man responsible for the deaths of my parents and all those who served them are gone. Then it will be over.”
“Aldo Porcelli. He is now head of the Porcelli family. He won’t be easy to get to. I’ve studied him and he has no set routines. He changes appointments at the last minute. This weekend he will be very vulnerable, but only this weekend. I believe it will be your best chance to take him.”
She frowned and once more crossed the room to drop into the chair across from him at the desk. “No. No, we can’t do that. It’s too soon. We never do two jobs so close together. If his family puts it together, they’ll come after you. Not me. No one knows about me, but they remember you, Tio Luigi. We can’t take that chance.”
“Sometimes, cara, we have to take chances if we want to win. Aldo is difficult. He is surrounded by protection at all times. He is never alone. I’ve spent the last few years studying him, collecting as much information as possible, and believe me when I tell you, if you don’t get to him this weekend, it could be a full year before we have another chance like this one.”
“I don’t like it,” Lissa said. “We’ve taken our time. That’s what has kept you safe. Deviating from that rule is dangerous. We’ve waited this long, what’s another year?” Let him have to convince her. She wasn’t just going to hand a victory to him, he was going to have to earn it.
Luigi sighed and studied her face. “You can be stubborn.”
“I have to be. It’s just as important to me to keep you safe as it is for you to keep me that way.”
She smiled at him. He smiled back. All teeth. Cat and canary. Her uncle planned on killing her. Lissa knew he couldn’t afford to keep her alive. Not after he succeeded in taking out the heads of both families. They’d played chess for years together. Luigi always won. Unbeknownst to him, she’d been letting him win since she was sixteen. They were still playing chess, only the stakes were much higher.
“Lissa, I understand what you’re saying, but I want this over with. I’m willing to take the chance. You go to your hotel meeting and sell your beautiful chandeliers. They’ll want them, of course. Then you come home, take care of Aldo Porcelli and go on with your plans. Go to Germany. Stay in the castle. Go see the hotel in St. Petersburg. I will have an alibi like I always do just in case. No one will suspect an old man getting his revenge after seventeen years. No one. The idea is ludicrous.”
She sighed, letting him see she was on the verge of capitulation. “I don’t like it, Tio Luigi.”
“No one knows about you, Lissa. And if they did, they would never suspect a young woman, especially a woman who lives in the United States and blows beautiful glass chandeliers she sells worldwide. This is our moment to strike.” He closed his fist, hit his desktop again. “Smash him. Crush Aldo Porcelli. It will be the end. We’ll both be free of this thing we’ve vowed. You will have your life back. You can marry. Have babies. Bring them to see your Tio Luigi. I have never been to the States. I would like to see this place where you live. This farm. I could meet the women you love as famiglia.”
“I would like that,” she murmured, and pushed at her hair, hoping the gesture covered the expression on her face. He was an excellent actor. He’d fooled her father and mother. They’d both loved him with everything in them. He’d fooled her. She’d loved him. She could almost believe it wasn’t true, that he was passionate about bringing those responsible for his brother’s death to justice.
“It isn’t too late for you to find someone, Tio,” she ventured, wondering what he would say. “You aren’t so old that you couldn’t marry, have children of your own. I always wondered why you didn’t.”
“No. No. Not with this disease. So terrible. I would not want to put this on any woman. No. I will stay alone, and you will give me babies to dote on in my old age. I will be their favorite tio.”
Lissa pressed a hand tight against her churning stomach. She couldn’t take the game they were playing much longer. “Why this weekend?”
She watched the tension drain out of him. She hadn’t realized just how tense he’d gotten until he relaxed. She twisted her fingers into a fist and massaged the hard knot at the nape of her neck threatening to destroy her composure.
“Aldo has a mistress.” Luigi leaned forward, hissing the accusation. “He cannot even be faithful to his wife.”
He delivered the condemnation in a voice of utter contempt. Evidently, now that she appeared to capitulate, he was back in his element. She was fairly certain if he’d taken to the entertainment industry, he would have gotten far.
“He sees her regularly, but never at the same time or day. He doesn’t like routine and neither does his protection squad. He always has four bodyguards with him. They’re good and very thorough. You’ll have to find a way past them.”
She nodded. Waiting. Making him give her the details without encouraging him in the least. She wanted to yawn. Luigi was so predictable.
“This Saturday is the anniversary of his finding his mistress. He never misses it. Never. She’s been his mistress for the last eight years. When he isn’t banging his wife, he’s with her. All the time.”
She couldn’t resist. “So he’s faithful to his wife and mistress. It’s just the two women?”
Luigi made a sound, a snort of derision, and crossed himself. “I wouldn’t call it faithful to break the holy vows of matrimon
y, Lissa. Aldo cheats on his wife, and she is very devoted to him. This is your chance. He will go to his mistress this Saturday.”
She shook her head. “You know it’s risky trying to plan something so quickly, especially when he has experienced bodyguards with him.”
“He doesn’t ever allow them into her apartment. I have gathered all the details you’ll need to plan this. Aldo might not stick to a routine, but his bodyguards do. I have provided each of their locations when their boss visits his woman.” He leaned even farther across his desk. “You can do this, Lissa. For your father and mother. My beloved Marcello and Elizabeta. You have an opportunity to end this thing once and for all. He is the last and the guiltiest.”
“Don’t you think it strange that he killed an entire family because my mother refused to sleep with him, yet he’s faithful to his wife and mistress?”
Her question was met with absolute silence. She knew immediately she’d made a terrible mistake. Luigi’s face turned expressionless, his dark eyes searching her face for something she feared she couldn’t hide. He looked sharp, piercing, very cunning. In the lines of his face she read evil. She knew she looked at the real man, not the mask.
That was the strangest thing of all. They all wore masks. Luigi had from the moment she’d entered his home. She did. When she went after those responsible for killing her parents. When she was on the farm with the women she loved as family. Casimir went through his entire life with a mask. No one saw them. They were hidden away, players on a stage – and she wanted off.
“What are you saying, Lissa? Do you not remember him being there? Directing the entire event? He orchestrated the murders. I showed you pictures and you pointed him out. You did that. I spent years making certain we had the right people.”
“I know.” She hung her head, covered her face with her hands for a moment, wishing for Casimir. Wishing for his arms to get her out of the study where evil permeated every bit of air. Evil smelled and it was sandalwood and spice, the cologne her uncle always wore. “I’m just so tired, Tio. I spoke to Cosmos. I broke a long-standing rule. I don’t know if I can do this again so soon.”
“You will do this,” Luigi declared in his hard, authoritative, most commanding voice. “You will find a way into that house and you will kill this man who murdered your family.”
She nodded. “I know. Of course I will. I’ll start work tonight. I’ll need to do recon. Will Arturo be back? When I’m scouting around, I usually take him with me, that way I can concentrate on what I need to do instead of constantly watching my back.”
No one ever went with her when she did the job, but Arturo guarded her while she did the setup. Still, even with the setup, she was careful. Betrayed by a trusted family friend, watching Cosmos help to murder her parents, had taught her to be extremely cautious, even with those she loved. She always made certain Patrice Lungren did the reconnaissance, not Lissa Piner. No one went with her to the storage unit when she changed beforehand. She wanted no hidden cameras, no surprises later on. If she thought she was under surveillance by anyone, she aborted instantly.
“I doubt Arturo will be back so soon. You’ll have to take Tomasso.”
Her mouth dropped open. “You hardly know that man. Seriously, Tio, you have no idea if he’s loyal or not. What are you thinking?” But she knew exactly what he was thinking. He didn’t trust any of his men to keep their mouth shut with such an important mission. It was blackmail material. They would guess what she was up to. Luigi couldn’t have that, not if he planned to take over the Porcelli family. There could be no witnesses. No one left alive who might know what Luigi had done.
All along he planned to kill Tomasso. That was why he’d been the bodyguard selected to watch over her while Luigi was feigning his illness. Luigi planned to dispose of him as well. She curled her fingers into a tighter fist. She should have seen that coming the moment Luigi assigned a new man as her personal bodyguard. He didn’t want her to question his choice when he sent the man along with her on her recon of Aldo’s mistress.
“He has already proven his loyalty. I think he’s a good man and he’ll watch your back while you put together your plan. So it is decided. You will get to work this week planning and then you will kill Aldo Porcelli and at last allow my brother to rest in peace.” He sat back in his leather chair, looking very pleased. “Now tell me every detail of Cosmos’s death. I want to know his every reaction, his expression, especially when he realized who you were.”
Casimir drove quickly through the streets toward the building Luigi disappeared into each night. Arturo stayed there, he was certain of it. He didn’t appear to leave, but stayed inside unless he walked Luigi out. The two men seemed very pleased with themselves, talking animatedly before Luigi got in his car to drive off. They laughed and slapped each other on the back or shoulder. Whatever they were up to made them both very jovial.
There were cameras set up around the building, but no one ever cleaned them off and spiderwebs covered the lenses. Casimir had to strike tonight, right now, while Luigi was Lissa’s alibi. Arturo dying unexpectedly would set off alarm bells in Luigi unless they played this exactly right. He glanced at his watch. He would have only a short time to get this done before rushing to the hotel to make an appearance so when Luigi checked – and he would because he had a suspicious nature – the head of security would give him an alibi. He would make Arturo’s death quick, something he didn’t deserve, but there was no real time for anything else.
He used the shadows of the building to stay out of sight of the cameras as much as possible. With the amount of dirt and webs on them, even if they picked him up, they wouldn’t see much. Still, he was going to make certain he removed the memory cards.
The door was locked, not coded. A big mistake, but one he wasn’t surprised about. Luigi was old school. He didn’t embrace technology. Even at his house, there were no real codes on anything. Luigi didn’t want to memorize them.
Casimir made short work of the lock and then tested the door handle. He listened, but there was no sound at all. He’d noticed that before. Not a single sound escaped from inside. He could only surmise that the building was soundproof, which meant Luigi probably brought men he wanted interrogated to the site. He’d been fairly certain all along that Arturo wasn’t alone in that building.
He opened the door cautiously, inch by inch, listening for an alarm, a noise, anything that would tell him someone waited on the other side. In all the surveillance he’d done on the building, he hadn’t seen anyone else come or go other than Luigi. That meant whoever was inside with Arturo was a prisoner. That man would present a problem if he saw Casimir. He wore his older gentleman persona, but still, he didn’t want a witness. Arturo’s death needed to look natural.
He found himself in an entryway, a large rectangular room with low-slung couches and a couple of overstuffed chairs. An empty fish tank took up an entire corner and there were several paintings on the wall, nude couples in various sexual positions, all depicting various types of bondage.
His heart sank. He knew what this was. Luigi was reputed to run a very brisk prostitution business, providing a particular service to men or women with “unique” preferences. The women commanded high prices for their services because they catered to a very sick lot. Luigi made certain that the circle of very sick patrons returned often and that the circle kept expanding. The women had to be trained somewhere. He’d just discovered Luigi’s school.
The idea nauseated him. He’d been trained in the art of sex, every deviant and perverted act possible. Every type of seduction. The lessons had been brutal, and more than once a female partner had been killed for not performing up to the instructor’s standards. He knew the type of sadistic person it took to train a man or woman in the kinds of sexual technique Luigi wanted from his girls.
He checked for cameras, but there were none in the waiting room. The main working area had to be behind the closed door. He shut down all emotion. That kept him sane, it always had kept
him sane. There was no room for Casimir Prakenskii. No room for fire or anger, or anything that resembled emotion. He couldn’t feel for the victims. He could only exact justice as dispassionately as possible.
He stepped through the door into his own personal nightmare. The body of a once-beautiful woman, broken and bloody, hung by her wrists from cuffs attached to chains dangling from the ceiling. Blood spatter was on the wall behind her as well as in a circle around the body on the floor. Casimir knew she was already dead, just from the way the body hung. She was nude and there were hundreds of whip marks, old and new, cut deep into her flesh.
“I don’t know what the hell happened, Luigi,” Arturo’s voice came from around the corner. “She just died. Her fuckin’ eyes rolled back in her head and the next thing I know, she was dead. I don’t know, maybe I took it too fast for her. She just died. I’m going to have to get rid of the body. I figured I’d take her back to her estate in a couple of hours and then throw her over the cliff after Cosmos. You know, widow jumps to her death after husband dies.”
In spite of his resolve not to feel anything, the fire in his belly began to burn through the ice he’d laid over top of it. This woman was Cosmos’s widow, Carlotta. Luigi and Arturo had taken her from her home and planned to force her into prostitution. There was no remorse in Arturo’s voice, only disgust.
Fire Bound (Sea Haven Sisters Page 19